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European Integration

CAFIA has been carefully monitoring development in the area of European food law and activities of the European Commission associated with the establishment of the European Food Authority as anticipated in the White Paper on Food Safety of the European Commission of January 2000, although it is not an authority accountable for harmonisation of the Czech food legislation with the EC law, nor it participates directly in the pre-integration negotiations in the field of food control. However, the amendments to the EU laws, directly concerning CAFIA, includes a new decree on the quality control of fresh fruit and vegetables, No. 1148/2001, cancelling the decree issued in 1992 and introducing some new aspects in this field. With view to the fact that CAFIA had taken part in the preparation of a new law on SZPI (see Chapter 7), it was necessary to reflect this fact in the bill.

In connection to the draft of a bill on SZPI and to the accelerating preparations of the Czech Republic for integration into EU, CAFIA commenced systematising of the food legislation with EC and its detailed comparison with the Czech legal standards. The so called compatibility tables to the bill, forming the mandatory annex to each new bill, lay the basis for similar analyses of further relevant regulations that CAFIA uses for the accomplishment of its competences.

As to the integration talks, CAFIA closely collaborated with the Ministry of Agriculture and other authorities involved in the preparation of technical consultations held between the Czech Republic and the European Union on the phytosanitary issues. CAFIA, due to drawing out the section on monitoring and control of pesticides residues and contaminants in food, had a share on the development of a strategy for the phytosanitary issues until the incorporation of CR into EU.

International Organisations

Also in 2001 CAFIA representatives participated in several meetings of the significant international organisations such as FLEP and Codex Alimentarius Commission of WHO/FAO. The XVII FLEP meeting was held in London in June and CAFIA delegated its representative. The FLEP Working Party for mycotoxins was organised too, CAFIA became its member since its establishment in 2000. CAFIA also delegated representative at a regular meeting of the Committee for Testing Methods and Sampling of Codex Alimentarius. CAFIA submitted amendments to some drafts of directives that were debated within the scope of the meeting. The CAFIA's representatives took part in the meetings of other committees in the statute of observes, they were the Committee for Additives, Committee for Pesticides Residues or Committee for Food for Special Dietary Uses.

CAFIA established official contacts with the FAO Sub-regional Office for the Central and Eastern Europe, having its seat in Budapest. It was agreed in the preliminary negotiations that CAFIA would cooperate with FAO in the preparation of seminars on food safety held in the Czech Republic. It will also have a share on the organisation of an international workshop on food safety held for the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and for the countries of the former Soviet Union.

EU Projects

The preparation and implementation of projects funded from various programs of the European Union or its member countries rank among the important activities in the field of international relations. In 2001, Phare project on personnel training (see Chapter 6) was terminated. CAFIA commenced, in parallel with this project, preparing the project documentation for a new Phare program that should both increase efficiency of the CAFIA activities and create a data base for communication between all authorities of public service taking part in food control in the Czech Republic. The project counts on the development of information system that would bring an interface between all the respective authorities and that would be prepared for being connected to the Rapid Alert System operated by the European Commission. Implementation of this project should commence in autumn 2002 and terminate in spring 2004. CAFIA also submitted a draft of a project funded from MATRA program - these are resources earmarked by the Dutch government in order to establish institutions in public sector. The project focuses especially on training of CAFIA personnel and should be implemented in the course of 2003.

CAFIA also applied for work in the international project called QUID Thematic Network whose main objective is to develop a European network of laboratories enforcing the Directive 79/112/EEC, on labelling and presentation of products in practice. The principal objective of this project, which should take 3 years, is the exchange of experience and information in the areas of determination of the quantitative ingredient declaration in foodstuffs, execution of inter-laboratory experiments and development of an infrastructure for the transmission and exchange of information between laboratories involved in the official food control. The first two meetings of a working group of this project were held in 2001 with the participation of a CAFIA representative.

Cooperation with foreign partners

In view of the imminent integration of CR into EU, it was necessary to establish closer bilateral relations with the control authorities not only in the EU countries but also with the associates. While in 2000 CAFIA entered in a close relationship with the Irish FSAI, in 2001 a bilateral agreement on cooperation in the field of market supervision was concluded with the Hungarian General Inspectorate for the Consumer Protection. The agreement specifies the principal spheres of cooperation and generally defines the exchange of information and experience.

Conferences, seminars

CAFIA staff took part in various international seminars and courses. To name the most important: seminar "Food Safety First" that was held in the Netherlands and funded by the Dutch government. Its main objective was to inform the participants about the food control principles in the Netherlands and the system of the EU food law. The Dutch government also funded a course called "Chain Management and Agricultural Development" focused on the presentation of principles of the food safety arrangement proceeding from the primary production, through processing up to retail trade.

Conferences that the CAFIA representatives visit are not only a chance for the exchange of information and professional experience, but also for the establishment of informal contacts with the representatives of other control authorities, research institutes, European Commission or other institutions. In 2001 it was a conference on the Consumer Protection in E-Business held in Budapest, the conference on Food Safety held in Slovenia or the common conference of the WHO and FSAI on Strengthening of the National Food Safety Programs.
CAFIA publishes and draws information both from the Czech and foreign press